"And just to think," said Bob, as the three sat on the home steps
talking over their exciting trip on old No. 777, "just to think of how
many boys and girls are killed on the railroad tracks every day!"
"Every day," echoed the little Safety Scout, "and all over the world. Go
into any village graveyard along any railroad, and you'll find the grave
of some boy or girl who has been killed trespassing on the railroad
tracks. No way to save them, I'm afraid, till folks wake up to the fact
that it's not so much the tramps who are being killed this way--it's the
children!"
"It's just awful," said Betty, puckering up her brow in a thoughtful
scowl. "I think we ought to do something about it."
"What, for instance?" Sure Pop was watching her sharply.
"Well, something to put a stop to it. Surely we could find _some_ way of
teaching the boys and girls how to play safely; and then when they grew
up they'd be in the habit of _thinking_ Safety. Then they'd teach
_their_ boys and girls--and all this awful killing and crippling, or
most of it, would be ended."
"The trouble is," said Bob, "in going at the thing in too much of a
hit-or-miss style. We could do some good by talking to the few boys and
girls we could reach, but not enough. Why can't we organize?"
Sure Pop's eager face lighted up, overjoyed at the turn Bob's thoughts
were taking. "You can," he said quietly.
"Why, sure!" went on Bob, getting more and more excited as the idea took
hold. "Let's get busy and organize an army of Safety Scouts right here.
We've already got the biggest thing in the Safety Scout Law at
work--don't you see?--our 'One Boost for Safety' every day. We can get
some more Safety Scout buttons made, and as fast as a boy earns his--"
"--Or a girl earns hers!"--interrupted Betty, so seriously that Bob
couldn't help smiling.
"Yes, of course--girls too--why, as fast as boys and girls earn the
right to wear Safety Scout buttons, we can form them into patrols. It
wouldn't be long before we could have several troops hard at it. I tell
you, Sure Pop, if we go at it that way we can do big things for Safety
just as sure as you're a foot high!"
Sure Pop gave Betty a droll little wink. "It's a go, then," he said
cheerfully. "Well, where are you going to begin?"
Bob looked up at him with a sudden idea shining in his eyes. "Why not
begin by organizing in patrols and then in troops, just about like the
Boy Scouts? First, we can get a few of our friends interested, and let
each one of them get eleven others interested--that will make a patrol
of twelve, commanded by the one who got them together."
"Spoken like a Scout and a gentleman!" cried the little Colonel, giving
him a sounding thump on the shoulder. "Go on, Bob--what next?"
"Well, just as fast as we get four new patrols, we can form them into a
troop, with a Scout Master for their leader."
"Good," said Sure Pop. "It will take some lively work to pick your Scout
Masters and get them trained in time, but the difference in their
efficiency will be worth your while."
"I suppose," said Betty, "we'll have to choose only boys and girls who
have good records for Safety?"